Asbestos is a very serious problem in Britain. It is responsible for a number of diseases such as asbestosis.
Asbestosis is a chronic inflammation of the tissues of the lungs. Symptoms of asbestosis begin to materialise around fifteen to twenty years after the initial exposure occurs. The symptoms often appear gradually over a long period of time. It is often the shortness of breath that is the most common symptom.
Usually a cough is present which gradually gets worse and worse over time. It is fairly easy to ignore the cough initially but asbestosis coughs become more and more troublesome.
Chest pain is another common symptom associated with asbestosis. It is a good idea to get all chest pain checked out by a doctor in order to discover the cause as it can be the result of many health problems.
A rarer symptom is that the ends of the fingers become swollen and red due to a build up of fluid in the tissues. This symptom is known as finger clubbing and is much less common than the other symptoms.
A doctor will investigate your symptoms after discussing your concerns with you and he or she will also probably listen to your chest using a stethoscope. When suffering from asbestosis a crackling noise will easily be heard on the patient's chest. This is a sure sign of asbestosis.
Your doctor will also take a brief medical history and question whether you have been exposed to asbestos and how long your exposure lasted. Questions will also be asked surrounding the protection used, if any was used.
If an asbestosis diagnosis is expected then the following three tests will be conducted - a spirometer test: This measures how much oxygen you can inhale in relation to how much carbon dioxide you exhale. An X-ray: This may be taken of your lungs and chest. If the asbestos is predicted to be in its early stages then a CT scan may be carried out in order to see clearly what the extent of it is.
Asbestosis is a chronic inflammation of the tissues of the lungs. Symptoms of asbestosis begin to materialise around fifteen to twenty years after the initial exposure occurs. The symptoms often appear gradually over a long period of time. It is often the shortness of breath that is the most common symptom.
Usually a cough is present which gradually gets worse and worse over time. It is fairly easy to ignore the cough initially but asbestosis coughs become more and more troublesome.
Chest pain is another common symptom associated with asbestosis. It is a good idea to get all chest pain checked out by a doctor in order to discover the cause as it can be the result of many health problems.
A rarer symptom is that the ends of the fingers become swollen and red due to a build up of fluid in the tissues. This symptom is known as finger clubbing and is much less common than the other symptoms.
A doctor will investigate your symptoms after discussing your concerns with you and he or she will also probably listen to your chest using a stethoscope. When suffering from asbestosis a crackling noise will easily be heard on the patient's chest. This is a sure sign of asbestosis.
Your doctor will also take a brief medical history and question whether you have been exposed to asbestos and how long your exposure lasted. Questions will also be asked surrounding the protection used, if any was used.
If an asbestosis diagnosis is expected then the following three tests will be conducted - a spirometer test: This measures how much oxygen you can inhale in relation to how much carbon dioxide you exhale. An X-ray: This may be taken of your lungs and chest. If the asbestos is predicted to be in its early stages then a CT scan may be carried out in order to see clearly what the extent of it is.
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